Imam of the Zaidi Sect of Shi‘a Muslims

His Eminence Mohammad bin Mohammad Al-Mansour is the Imam of the Zaidi branch of the Shia sect of Muslims, one of the three main branches of Shia Islam. With approximately ten million followers, Zaidis constitute almost half the entire population of Yemen and around 3 percent in Saudi Arabia.

Lineage in the Imamate: Zaidi Muslims are a Shia sect named after the followers of Zaid bin Ali, grandson of Al-Hussein (grandson of the Prophet Muhammad). The sect was formed by the followers of Zaid bin Ali who led an unsuccessful revolt against the Umayyad Caliph Hisham ibn Abd Al-Malik in 740 CE. The Zaidis are also known as ‘the Fivers’ (referring to the number of Imams they consider infallible). They are the closest branch of Shia to the Sunnis, and even their fiqh is similar to the Hanafis.

Current Social Influence: In the past decade a Zaidi movement known as the Shabab al Mumineen first led by Hussein al-Houthi, and now by Abdul Malik al-Houthi, has been gaining prominence in the northwest of Yemen. This has stoked some sectarian rivalry in Yemen, between the Zaidi and radical anti-Shia groups who are fearful of the resurgence of Zaidi rule in Yemen. Al-Mansour has maintained his quietist approach and enjoys much respect in Yemeni society. Al-Mansour was influential in stemming the escalation of conflict in 2005. Sheikh Muhammad is part of a political party that consists of all the prominent Zaidi opposition (including some Houthis). Their latest activity (2011) was signing the Gulf-brokered deal which ended Ali Abdullah Saleh’s rule.

1073The number of years that the Zaidis ruled Yemen. It came to an end in 1970.

92The number of years he has lived since becoming blind at the age of 7.

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—November 2006[1]. From its conception in the mind of the Abbasid Khalifa Abu Jaafar Al-Mansour in 767 A.D., until the day of its first destruction by the Venice-allied Mongol hordes in 1258, Baghdad became the cradle of a historical scientific and ...

One of the victims of his derision was Sufyan Ibn Mu'awiyah, who took his revenge when Ibn Al Muqaffa offended the caliph, Al Mansour, allegedly by encouraging the Banu Ali, and especially his uncle Abdullah Ibn Ali, to rise against the ruler. Ibn Al ...